Single hen

[emmat]

Hello all

 

I have read the few posts about feather loss but just wanted to ask anyway as my lady seems a bit different.

 

She doesn't have dry skin, isn't being bullied (very close 3 we have - no fights) and none of the other girls have any feather loss at all.

 

But... she's got a bald bottom. From the vent down about 3 inches and an inch ish in each direction she's bald except for a couple of feathers. Been this way for about 2 weeks and not getting better.

 

She's approx 2.5 years old, eating well, drinking, laying daily and seems her usual naughty greedy self.

 

Anything I can do to help her? Could it be mites when the others aren't effected?

 

Any suggestions welcome! xxx

[Tiggy]

2 of mine are the same I wonder if they are starting to moult, both are laying but not every days and seem to be eating 7 drinking OK

[Redwing]

I know you say there are no bullying problems but could it be feather pecking?

 

I have two who have bald bottoms and it wasn't until I spent more time with my girls that I realised that the two others are eating their feathers, not in a bullying way but almost absent mindedly like they are grazing I have no bullying problems amongst my hens either apart from the odd little barney

 

The two with bald bottoms are the higher in the pecking order too so I just wouldnt have imagined that the baldness was pecking related, I was loading them with extra protein trying to get them to grow feathers too - I bet they loved that

 

Something else I have read about is an allergy to the nest box bedding - could it be that possibly?

[Trudie]

I had the same problem. I originally thought it was a moult only when I watched the girls for a long time did I see the pecking incident. It wasn't nasty just a quick peck here and there, hardly noticeable really. I was told it was lack of oil in their diet so put good olive or caster oil int their food...no change. Put a beak ring on the offending plucker and hey presto feathers growing back. Unfortuantley the beak has worn where the ring is so I am now going to have to put on a bumper bit. My hen looked like a battery hen but is now looking near normal. They have never fought and always been friends, just one can't help herself.

[sandyhas3chucks]

Ones best friend was lovingly pecking her feathers out during the night. (she's weird and a nocturnal ist!)

[Mazzarina]

One of mine had a similar problem, and the breeder advised me that it was the middle one that was probably doing the feather pecking, not the top chook. Sure enough I watched them the other day and it was middle chicken - I hadn't noticed before because when I spend time with them it's when they're free-ranging (she only does it when she's in the run). There's no agro between them; as the others say, it's almost absent-mindedly done.

 

Another good tip the breeder had was to look in the house at night - the chicken who sat beak to tail with the peckee was probably the culprit, using her friend as a kind of mobile snack bar.

[sandyhas3chucks]

one could almost think "ah how sweet!" little monsters!

[emmat]

Thanks guys... I hadn't seen any feathers in the run/house so assumed it was happening outside. Had no idea they would eat them!!!!

 

This hen does sit in the doorway between cube house and nesting box - perhaps her bottom is just too tempting not to bite!!

 

Ok, so what can I do about it? If it bothered her she'd let them know right?? She's the oldest of the 3, and we had her before the other 2. Does that mean she's top of the pack? They all behave the same so not sure how to tell which is the queen bee!!

 

xx